(Zaman Al Wasl)- At least 9 troops and Shiite militants were killed in fresh attack by Syrian rebels on the regime’s army bastions in Kabana hilltops in coastal Latakia province, military sources said Tuesday.
The heavy artillery fire has halted the regime advance into Kabana hilltops as Damascus seeks to uproot the Turkish-backed rebels from their last stronghold in the coastal region.
The strategic mountainous area has been under major attack over the past few weeks. So far, the Turkish-backed National Liberation Front has killed at least 85 troops, including Iranian and Hezbollah militants.
Four more troops were killed by rebels in Mount Turkman, sources said.
Rebels and jihadists have killed more than 130,000 pro-regime forces since the armed conflict erupted eight years ago with the brutal repression of protests against Bashar al-Assad, according to local monitoring groups.
In retaliation, regime air strikes have rocked the adjacent province of Idlib.
A ceasefire announced by Russia has largely held since late August in Idlib, although dozens of civilians have been killed in sporadic bombardment since then.
Last month, Assad said Idlib was standing in the way of an end to the civil war that has ravaged his country through most of the current decade.
Al-Assad, who now controls around 60 percent of the country, has vowed to reclaim the rest, including Idlib and small pockets in Latakia.
Eight years of war in Syria have killed 560,000 people and driven half the pre-war population of 22 million from their homes, including more than 6 million as refugees to neighbouring countries.
Zaman Al Wasl
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